Defence Online

Type of document: Contract Notice
Country: United Kingdom
Publication Ref: (2022/S 000-002763/EN)
Nature of contract: Supply contract
Procedure: Negotiated without a call for competition
Type of bid required: Not applicable

Voluntary ex ante transparency notice
Supplies

Section I: Contracting authority
I.1) Name and addresses
Official name: Ministry of Defence
Town: Portsmouth
Country: United Kingdom
Email: eleanor.towler100@mod.gov.uk
Internet address(es):
Main address: www.contracts.mod.uk

I.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority, including their regional or local sub-divisions
I.5) Main activity
Defence

Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title: UPGRADE AND SUPPORT OF SRS FUSION
II.1.2) Main CPV code: 35512400
II.1.3) Type of contract Supplies
II.1.4) Short Description:
The Royal Navy, part of the Ministry of Defence, intends to award a 2 year contract with a value of £183,000 to Strategic Robotic Systems (SRS) for the support and upgrade of the FUSION Remotely Operated Vehicle (Vehicle), which is used to carry out ordonnance disposal in ports and harbours.
In accordance with the provisions of The Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 SI No. 2020/1319, this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015) as amended (in particular by SI 2020/1319). Prior publication of a contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union is no longer appropriate. It is considered that the award of the contract without prior publication of a contract notice in the UK e-notification service (in accordance with the relevant legislation) is lawful in accordance with regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) of the PCR 2015 because competition is absent for technical reasons.
This is because SRS is the Original Equipment Manufacturer of the Vehicle. No other supplier would have the technical expertise, know-how and technical documentation (including in particular the source code for the Vehicle’s software) necessary to safely support and upgrade the Vehicle. A new supplier would need to reverse engineer the software, which would introduce unacceptable risk to the integrity of the Vehicle, its functionality and its operational effectiveness.
II.1.6) Information about lots
The contract is divided into lots: no
II.1.7) Total value of the procurement(excluding VAT)
Value:210000.00
Currency:GBP
II.2) Description
II.2.3) Place of performance
Nuts code:
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
The Royal Navy, part of the Ministry of Defence, intends to award a 2 year contract with a value of £183,000 to Strategic Robotic Systems (SRS) for the support and upgrade of the FUSION Remotely Operated Vehicle (Vehicle), which is used to carry out ordonnance disposal in ports and harbours.
In accordance with the provisions of The Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 SI No. 2020/1319, this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015) as amended (in particular by SI 2020/1319). Prior publication of a contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union is no longer appropriate. It is considered that the award of the contract without prior publication of a contract notice in the UK e-notification service (in accordance with the relevant legislation) is lawful in accordance with regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) of the PCR 2015 because competition is absent for technical reasons.
This is because SRS is the Original Equipment Manufacturer of the Vehicle. No other supplier would have the technical expertise, know-how and technical documentation (including in particular the source code for the Vehicle’s software) necessary to safely support and upgrade the Vehicle. A new supplier would need to reverse engineer the software, which would introduce unacceptable risk to the integrity of the Vehicle, its functionality and its operational effectiveness.

II.2.5) Award criteria
II.2.11) Information about options
Options:yes
Description of options:
In addition to manufacturer’s warranty, corrective maintenance packages are offered by the OEM to ensure comprehensive and cost-effective support over the period of evaluation.

II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: no
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1) Description
IV.1.1) Type of procedure
Negotiated procedure without prior publication(in accordance with Article 32 of Directive 2014/24/EU)
IV.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement(GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: no
IV.2) Administrative information

Section V: Award of contract/concession
V.2) Award of contract/concession
V.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract/concession award decision:2022-01-31
V.2.2) Information about tenders
V.2.3) Name and address of the contractor
Official name: SRS FUSION
Town: 14842 NE 95th St, Redmond, WA 98052
Country: United States
Nuts code:
The contractor is an SME: yes

V.2.4) Information on value of the contract/lot/concession(excluding VAT)
for framework agreements – total maximum value for this lot
for contracts based on framework agreements, if required – value of contract(s) for this lot not included in
previous contract award notices
V.2.5) Information about subcontracting
The contract/lot/concession is likely to be subcontracted
Value or proportion likely to be subcontracted to third parties

Section VI: Complementary informationVI.4) Procedures for review
VI.4.1) Review body
Official name: Ministry of Defence
Town: Portsmouth
Country: United Kingdom

VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice:
2022-01-31

Justification for the award of the contract without prior publication of a call for
competition in the Official Journal of the European Union
1.Justification for the choice of the negotiated procedure without prior publication of a call for competition in accordance with Article
32 of Directive 2014/24/EU
The products involved are manufactured purely for the purpose of research , experiment, study or development under the conditions stated
in the directive(for supplies only)
The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason:
absence of competition for technical reasons

3.Explanation
Please explain in a clear and comprehensive manner why the award of the contract without prior publication in the Official Journal of the European Union
is lawful, by stating the relevant facts and, as appropriate, the conclusions of law in accordance with the directive:
The Royal Navy, part of the Ministry of Defence, intends to award a 2 year contract with a value of £183,000 to Strategic Robotic Systems (SRS) for the support and upgrade of the FUSION Remotely Operated Vehicle (Vehicle), which is used to carry out ordonnance disposal in ports and harbours.
In accordance with the provisions of The Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 SI No. 2020/1319, this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015) as amended (in particular by SI 2020/1319). Prior publication of a contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union is no longer appropriate. It is considered that the award of the contract without prior publication of a contract notice in the UK e-notification service (in accordance with the relevant legislation) is lawful in accordance with regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) of the PCR 2015 because competition is absent for technical reasons.
This is because SRS is the Original Equipment Manufacturer of the Vehicle. No other supplier would have the technical expertise, know-how and technical documentation (including in particular the source code for the Vehicle’s software) necessary to safely support and upgrade the Vehicle. A new supplier would need to reverse engineer the software, which would introduce unacceptable risk to the integrity of the Vehicle, its functionality and its operational effectiveness.